After the excellent debut “Fate Outsmarts Desire” of 2017, Kaprekar’s Constant are back with their second studio work “Dept Of Field,” released on 27 August 2019 via Talking Elephant Records. The album incorporates the good things heard in the previous one, highlighting a good personal character. The first thing that catches your eye is the presence of Ian Anderson in the recitation of a poem in the song “Rosherville pt.2“. The opener starts with synth and guitar, horn and organ and the piece advances with powerful guitar riffs, the voice is melodious and sweet, and here comes the flute and the sax of David Jackson (Ex Van Der Graaf Generator). The voice of Dorie Jackson completes this evocative song centered on the history of Rosherville, Victorian city founded in 1830. “Holywell Street” is a lighter track but still of high level that leads us to another example of the narrative qualities of the band: “Ghost Planes“, here we are in 1944 and the doodle attacks raging on London, is the sad experience lived by the relatives of Nick Jefferson, with n a good sax and great drum rhythms. “The Nightwatchman” is a song where Dorie Jackson expresses all his talent, on a softer melody, between acoustic guitar, piano, strings and sax. Let’s now pass to “White Star Sunrise“, the core of the album with its 23:43 minutes is the set of 3 stories, “Olympic”, “Britannic” and “Titanic”, the three ships well-known to all. Here the band shows all its talent and the ideas contained in its sound are expressed as the maximum, fusing Prog and Folk in a sublime way. It seems a complicated undertaking to read it this way, but made possible by the skill of Kaprekar. Everyone works best on this almost “cinematographic” track and the use of samples is linked to the success of the narration, melodies and vocal create a suite of the highest level. In “Rosherville Part II” we see the collaboration of Ian Anderson, and the song is the resumption of the opener. In the final “Depth Of Field” short conclusion of this excellent album, telling of a cousin and childhood partner unfortunately passed away. The comparison with the historical Prog/Folk bands seems obvious, but this English group does not limit itself to retrace the footsteps of the masters, it adds something personal. The texts and stories narrated are of an excellent level, the music touches and blends various styles creating a more unique than rare sound. Folk elements blend perfectly with the Rock elements, the Progressive veins and the narrative recall the bands of the past, adding a good dose of personality by Kaprekar’s Constant. There are all the elements to hear about this band for a long time, they have great potential and they express it proving to be one of the most particular and innovative bands of this 2019.
Tracklist
1. Rosherville Part I (10:34)
2. Holywell Street (4:38)
3. Ghost Planes (10:48)
4. The Nightwatchman (6:10)
5. White Star Sunrise (23:43)
6. Rosherville Part II (9:37)
7. Depth Of Field (2:09)
Lineup
Bill Jefferson / Vocals
Dorie Jackson / Vocals
Al Nicholson / Guitars, Mandolin, Keyboards, Piano, Composer
Mike Westergaard / Keyboards, Piano, Guitar, Backing Vocals, Composer, production & Mixing
David Jackson / Saxophone, Flute, Whistles
Nick Jefferson / Bass, Guitars, Keyboards, Spoken Word, Composer
Mark Walker / Drums, Percussion
With:
Ian Anderson / spoken word (Track 6)
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